The Vietnamese leader met with the U.K.’s House of Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle, House of Commons Deputy Speaker Nigel Evans, Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs James Cleverly, and Secretary of State for Defense Ben Wallace, among others British officials.
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State President Vo Van Thuong (R) and U.K. Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs James Cleverly. |
During the meetings, President Vo Van Thuong rejoiced at positive developments of the Vietnam - U.K. strategic partnership in the context that the two countries are celebrating the 50th anniversary of their bilateral diplomatic ties.
The British officials shared their view on the significance of President Vo Van Thuong’s visit, stressing Vietnam is a leading partner of the U.K. in the region as the European nation is accelerating the implementation of its Indo-Pacific strategy.
They also noted with pleasure the dynamic developments of the Vietnam - U.K. strategic partnership over the past more than 10 years in all fields, and agreed to continue increasing all-level delegation exchanges in all the channels of Party, State, Government, parliament and people-to-people exchange, while further fully and effectively materializing the U.K. - Vietnam Free Trade Agreement and bilateral cooperation mechanisms like the defense policy dialogue and the Vietnam - U.K. Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO).
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State President Vo Van Thuong (R) and Vice President of Cuba Salvador Valdés Mesa |
The two sides expressed their wish to expand and deepen the bilateral cooperation in such potential spheres as national defense-security, green economy, climate change response and renewable energy.
President Vo Van Thuong suggested the U.K. help Vietnam in finance and technology, and raising the country’s capacity within the framework of the Just Energy Transition Partnership, towards fulfilling its commitments at the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), which took place in the U.K. in 2021.
Regarding cooperation at regional and international forums, the two sides agreed to closely coordinate and support each other in multilateral frameworks like ASEAN - U.K. cooperation, the United Nations, the U.N. Human Rights Council for 2023-2025, and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
The British officials affirmed their support for Vietnam’s and ASEAN’s stance on the East Sea (South China Sea), the settlement of disputes by peaceful measures on the basis of international law and the 1982 U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), as well as negotiations for a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) between ASEAN and China.
In a meeting with Vice President of Cuba Salvador Valdés Mesa, Thuong emphasized that the relationship between Vietnam and Cuba is exemplary in terms of purity, rarity, exemplar and loyalty.
Mesa, for his part, said the bilateral political ties have been constantly consolidated and strengthened, as reflected through regular all-level delegation exchanges, and expressed his belief that the relationship will grow further in the time ahead.
Source: VNA